Finally some progress: Farm bill passes House, now headed to the Senate

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The House of Representatives passed the farm bill by a vote of 251-166 Wednesday morning, according to a news release from the office of Rep. Frank Lucas, R-Okla., the chairperson of the House Agriculture Committee.

The bill voted on was the same that had been passed by the Farm Bill Conference Committee on Monday.

The quick farm bill action this past week comes as a relief to those in the agriculture industry and others. The 2008 farm bill expired on Sept. 30, 2012, and lawmakers had long been unable to agree on the details of a new one, and, instead passed short-term extensions.

The new farm bill — officially titled the Agricultural Act of 2014 — will now go the Senate for a vote.

A spokesperson from the office of Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo. — a member of the Senate Ag Committee — said the Senate was expecting to vote on the bill this week.

The bill includes the most significant reduction to farm policy spending in history by improving agricultural programs, according to the news release from Lucas.

• Enhances coordination between USDA, EPA, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) regarding the conflict between laws governing pesticide use and the Endangered Species Act.

• Enhances coordination between USDA and the U.S. FWS regarding actions taken to manage the lesser prairie chicken.